Valdez likely to start opener

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The Astros haven’t named an opening day starter, but common sense says it will be Framber Valdez for the second straight season.

As good as Cristian Javier was last season, he would be an unlikely pick at this point in his career for such an honored title as opening day starter, as would Luis Garcia and José Urquidy.

Astros manager Dusty Baker said he wasn’t ready to make anything official yet, but admitted that Valdez “probably” would be his guy on opening day.

The 29-year-old lefthander made his fourth start of the spring Saturday night against Max Scherzer and the Mets. With opening day less than two weeks away, he’ll likely get one more start before the regular season begins March 30

“Just general health,” Baker said when asked what he wanted to see from Valdez in those final two spring starts. “Framber’s strong. He works hard, works out hard, and it’s important that we keep our starters healthy. The healthier they are, the healthier our bullpen will be, most likely.”

If he does get the nod March 30, Valdez will be the 11th pitcher in franchise history to get the opening day nod in consecutive seasons. Justin Verlander, Dallas Keuchel and Roy Oswalt are the only ones to do it in the past 20 years.

Since making his debut in 2018, Valdez has put together three straight excellent seasons, but he topped them all by going 17-6 with a 2.82 ERA last year, which was enough for him to make his first All-Star team and finish fifth in American League Cy Young Award voting.

“This guy has been great,” Baker said. “He’s really matured as a player and a person. It meant a lot to him to make the All-Star team. It meant a lot to him to get starts in the World Series. He’s getting valuable experience in a short period of time.”

Besides the sparkling numbers, Valdez was a workhorse, leading the American League with 201.1 innings pitched — not to mention the 25 innings he threw in the postseason — the first time he’s thrown more than 135 innings in a season.